Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) Price Target Lowered to $178.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo cut its price target for Marsh & McLennan (MRSH) from $203 to $178 and kept an "equal weight" rating, implying only about a 2.2% upside from the prior close.
• MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Hold" with a mean target of $209.63, based on 1 Strong Buy, 5 Buy, 11 Hold and 1 Sell, signaling mixed analyst views.
• MRSH beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $2.12 versus $1.97 and revenue of $6.60B versus $6.52B (revenue +8.7% YoY), while posting a 31.6% return on equity and a 15.42% net margin.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $203.00 to $178.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price suggests a potential upside of 2.20% from the company's previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Evercore lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $236.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $206.00 to $200.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. They set a "hold (c)" rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $209.63.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of MRSH stock traded down $1.65 during trading on Thursday, hitting $174.17. The company had a trading volume of 135,759 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,050,775. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The company has a market cap of $84.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.75. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $174.39. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a one year low of $164.89 and a one year high of $239.34.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.15. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 31.60% and a net margin of 15.42%.The business had revenue of $6.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.87 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,655 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.30, for a total value of $3,052,861.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 116,811 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,411,456.30. The trade was a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marsh & McLennan Companies

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Numerai GP LLC grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 966.2% during the 3rd quarter. Numerai GP LLC now owns 37,220 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,501,000 after acquiring an additional 33,729 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 801.6% during the 3rd quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 12,073 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,433,000 after acquiring an additional 10,734 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 41.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,202,372 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $443,844,000 after acquiring an additional 647,987 shares during the period. Navera Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Navera Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,623,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $327,303,000 after acquiring an additional 105,954 shares during the period. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 76,196 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $15,356,000 after acquiring an additional 3,177 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies NYSE: MMC is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.

The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.

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